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18 Sports Oakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · THURSDAY, JULY 18, 2009 JON CURRIE / OAKVILLE BEAVER BEHIND THE WHEEL: Bruce McFetridge, 50, has resumed the pursuit of his childhood dream -- being a professional race car driver -- after battling through colitis gave him a new outlook on life. Getting a childhood dream back on track By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR Bruce McFetridge knows it's not going to be easy. But he's used to that. After battling through a disease that gave him a whole new outlook on life, the 50-year-old local resident has set his sights on becoming a professional race car driver, a childhood dream that took a back seat when his career steered him in a different direction. Eight years ago, McFetridge noticed he wasn't feeling quite right. He ignored it for a month before seeing a doctor, and was sent to Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital shortly after for emergency surgery. McFetridge thought he'd be in the hospital for 10 days. He ended up there for five weeks, losing nearly 10 pounds a week during his stay. McFetridge was then transferred to McMaster University, where he was put on experimental medication for another six weeks. Following that, McFetridge went to Mt. Sinai Hospital, where it was determined that he was suffering from colitis, a chronic digestive disease characterized by inflammation of the colon. The excruciating pain and loss of strength from the disease ended up costing McFetridge about two years of his life. "Everything came to a stop," says McFetridge, who was three-quarters of the way through a computer programming course at the time. The condition flared up again a couple years ago, but McFetridge has been able to resume his normal life since then. His interest in racing was rekindled when he began going back to Mosport International Raceway. McFetridge isn't completely green when it comes to being behind the wheel. Like many race car drivers, McFetridge raced go "You just have to karts as a youth. He then attended reach for the moon several different high-profile driv- and, if you can't grab ing schools and competed in the moon, find a star Formula Ford, Formula V and on the way down." Formula 2000 club races. He says racing cars is like riding Bruce McFetridge a bike and doesn't believe it will take long for him to reacclimate himself to the track. Still, he realizes people will be skeptical about what he's trying to do. "The way I look at it is, Paul Newman raced until he was 75 and was racing pro," McFetridge says. "In general, sometimes people are negative. I tell them it's the wrong thing to do. You just have to reach for the moon and, if you can't grab the moon, find a star on the way down. "This (dealing with colitis) has really made me very positive and determined." There are a couple things keeping McFetridge's return in neutral right now. The first step is getting his license reinstated, although McFetridge doesn't anticipate that will be a problem. He plans to get his license back through a couple days of lapping sessions with the Bridgestone Racing School. The bigger obstacle is finding the cash to compete in such an expensive sport. "There's a saying in racing that if you want to make $2 million, start out with $3 million," he laughs. McFetridge hopes to begin his return in the Formula Ford series and work his way up. Estimating he will need $100,000 in sponsorships to race a season of Formula Ford, McFetridge plans to put together a portfolio to present to potential sponsors once his license is reinstated. Anyone interested in sponsoring McFetridge can reach him by e-mail at b.mcf@sympatico.ca.